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Especially since the attacks in Paris, the opposition against Obama's plan to keep welcoming Syrian refugees into the U.S. has been growing. This 2-minute video provides a look at the numbers behind the people fleeing the Syrian crisis.
Ali Rizvi & Cristina RayasMcClatchy

In this Jan. 13, 2013, photo, Rep. Richard Hudson, R-N.C., is seen on Capitol Hill in Washington.
J. Scott ApplewhiteAP

Republicans in the House of Representatives who quickly pushed through a bill late last year to temporarily halt Syrian and Iraqi refugees from entering the United States want the Senate majority leader to bring up the measure for a vote soon after the upper body reconvenes Monday.

The bill – written by Reps. Richard Hudson, R-N.C., and Michael McCaul, R-Texas – would put pressure on federal security and intelligence officials to change the vetting process for all refugees entering the country. It would require additional reporting of such security measures and would mandate that senior-level security officials personally sign off on each refugee’s admittance.

The legislation doesn’t specify what additional screening processes should be in place. Hudson said he trusted top federal officials to design new ways to vet refugees and certify their safety.

The issue has been a contentious one for Republicans and Democrats for weeks in Washington since FBI Director James Comey testified before a House committee and said his agency could not unequivocally say the U.S. refugee-resettlement program posed no national security risk.

Now, Zinke’s letter says, Congress should act “to provide for a strong national defense. . . . We can think of no better effort than to move a bill forward that emphasizes the safety and security of the American people.”

Critics of the McCaul-Hudson refugee bill say the effort is misguided and that security screenings are rigorous enough to keep terrorists from exploiting the asylum-seeking process.

Yasmine Taeb, a lobbyist with a Quaker organization called the Friends Committee on National Legislation, provided McClatchy with a copy of Zinke’s letter Thursday afternoon. Taeb has been working with lawmakers for several weeks to oppose the refugee bill, arguing it is a “fear-mongering” tactic and anti-Muslim rhetoric.

Critics of the McCaul-Hudson refugee bill say the attempt is misguided and that security screenings are rigorous enough to keep terrorists from exploiting the asylum-seeking process. The United States has admitted more than 2,000 Syrian refugees in recent years with no documented instances of terrorists being allowed entry through that process.

By late afternoon Thursday, spokeswoman Heather Swift with Zinke’s office said that at least 20 House members, including McCaul and Hudson, had signed the letter to send to McConnell.

In North Carolina, Democratic Reps. Alma Adams, G.K. Butterfield and David Price and Republican Rep. Walter Jones voted against the refugee bill in November. President Barack Obama has vowed to veto it.

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Every politician has an opinion about Syrian refugees - from governors declaring they will accept or reject refugees to presidential candidates suggesting religion tests, it's hard to know whose word is law on refugees in America. McClatchy political edit

Natalie FertigMcClatchy

Hudson's proposal was voted on first in the House before a more detailed bill, co-written by McCaul, was introduced the next day and passed. Jones voted for Hudson’s original bill but later voted against the McCaul-Hudson proposal. Jones’ office has not replied to an email from McClatchy asking for more details about his position.